Evolutionary consequences of behavioral diversity

Iterated games provide a framework to describe social interactions among groups of individuals. Recent work stimulated by the discovery of "zero-determinant" strategies has rapidly expanded our ability to analyze such interactions. This body of work has primarily focused on games in which players face a simple binary choice, to "cooperate" or "defect". Real individuals, however, often exhibit behavioral diversity, varying their input to a social interaction both qualitatively and quantitatively. Here we explore how access to a greater diversity of behavioral choices impacts the evolution of social dynamics in finite populations. We show that, in public goods games, some two-choice strategies can nonetheless resist invasion by all possible multi-choice invaders, even while engaging in relatively little punishment. We also show that access to greater behavioral choice results in more "rugged " fitness landscapes, with populations able to stabilize cooperation at multiple levels of investment, such that choice facilitates cooperation when returns on investments are low, but hinders cooperation when returns on investments are high. Finally, we analyze iterated rock-paper-scissors games, whose non-transitive payoff structure means unilateral control is difficult and zero-determinant strategies do not exist in general. Despite this, we find that a large portion of multi-choice strategies can invade and resist invasion by strategies that lack behavioral diversity -- so that even well-mixed populations will tend to evolve behavioral diversity.Comment: 26 pages, 4 figure

Master of Science

thesisModels that describe conventional reservoirs can be used to explore the possibility of heavier-than-water oil. Steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) is a common process in reservoirs with extra heavy oils (oil sands). In some cases, oil that is heavier than water is present in these reservoirs. The segregation of oil and water may cause issues for recovery. It is important to understand the initial saturation distribution of oil and water for proper design of injection. It was found through simulation that the heavy oil would pool towards the bottom of a heavy oil reservoir with water remaining on top of the oil. With capillary pressure, the heavy oil and water will form a transition zone. The extent of the transition zone is dependent on the density gradient of the oil, the density difference between the oil and water, and the slope of the capillary pressure saturation profile. This finding influences the positioning of production piping in steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) as well as possible geological pooling areas for recovery. The possibility of a water zone between oil zones increases the risk of missing oil in the reservoir when drilling or perforating

Forging with Embers: The Life and Pre-gubernatorial Career of Isaac Murphy, 1799-1864

The gubernatorial administration of Isaac Murphy from 1864-1868, as Arkansas began emerging from the Civil War into Reconstruction, has had a thorough, if dated, examination in Arkansas historiography. However, Murphy’s life and pre-gubernatorial career, including his early political activities—being the first treasurer of Washington County, Arkansas (1836-1838), serving three terms in the Arkansas General Assembly (two in the House, 1846-1849, and one in the Senate, 1856-1857), and the totality of his action during both sessions of Arkansas’s Secession Convention (1861)—have been largely neglected. This thesis will additionally provide a biographical interpretation of Murphy necessary to fully understand his political actions—his life, personality, his much-vaunted sense of morality, and how his experiences informed his politics and decisions

Proposal for three Greek papyrological characters

This is a proposal to add three Greek characters to the international character encoding standard Unicode, needed to represent text on papyri. The characters were published in Unicode Standard version 7.0 in June 2014

Detecting Cardio-Respiratory Instability in Neonates

https://scholarworks.moreheadstate.edu/student_scholarship_posters/1060/thumbnail.jp

Robotic Approach to Colon Resection

Robotic surgical techniques are being increasingly adopted as a tool in the minimally invasive armamentarium of the colorectal surgeon. These platforms present numerous potential advantages in visualization, precise dissection, and tissue manipulation while potentially reducing operator fatigue. They may also reduce the learning curve and rate of conversion, though the short- and long-term benefits of this approach in non-pelvic colorectal surgery, and the cost–benefit balance remain an ongoing debate. Adherence to established principles of laparoscopic colon surgery, a robust understanding of the operative anatomy, and proper patient preparation and setup are critical for the efficient and effective utilization of a robotic approach for colon resection